NAACP Mourns Passing Of Civil Rights Activist James Forman

January 11, 2005

A leader known for pushing the South and the Nation toward
change

The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
(NAACP) mourns the passing of James Forman, a pioneer for civil
rights and former executive secretary of the revolutionary
organization, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC).
Forman died on January 10th in Washington, D.C.

NAACP Board Chairman, Julian Bond said, "He imbued the
organization with camaraderie and collegiality that I've never seen
in any organization before or since." Bond served as SNCC's
communications director during Forman's tenure.

During the Civil Rights Movement, Forman was instrumental in
securing SNCC a spot amongst the powerful group of civil rights
organizations known as the Big Five. These groups included the
NAACP, NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund, the Congress of
Racial Equality and the Southern Christian Leadership
Conference.

Graduating with honors from high school in 1947, Forman went on
to serve in the Air force during the Korean War. Upon joining SNCC
in 1961, Forman was soon appointed executive secretary.

In 1964, Forman brought nearly one thousand young volunteers,
with various ethnicities, together to register voters, set up
freedom schools, establish community centers and build the
Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party. Among these volunteers were
Andrew Goodman, James Chaney and Michael Schwerner, who were later
murdered in Mississippi by white racists.

Known for being a leader in the fight for reparations, Forman
interrupted a service at the Riverside Church in New York City in
1969 and demanded $500 million in reparations from white churches
to make up for the injustices African Americans had suffered over
centuries.

Forman authored several books and in 1981 moved to Washington
D.C. where he started the Washington Times newspaper. His legacy is
imbedded in the organizations he formed including the Black
American News Service, Black Economic Development Conference, and
the Unemployment and Poverty Action Committee.

Founded in 1909, the NAACP is the nation's oldest and largest
civil rights organization. Its half-million adult and youth members
throughout the United States and the world are the premier
advocates for civil rights in their communities, conducting voter
mobilization and monitoring equal opportunity in the public and
privates sectors.